Five Things Not to Do When Closing on a Home

As if the whole process of buying a home wasn’t stressful enough, at the end you have to close. For many people closing on a home is a time of celebration and excitement, but unfortunately there are things you can say or do at the closing that could stop the process entirely.

If something you say or do at a closing delays or stops the process, you can be held responsible, and be considered in default of your contract, leading to losing your interest rate, or losing your new home.

Naturally, you want to say and do the right things during your closing, so here are a few things you should NEVER do, when closing in on your dream home.

Do not mention your credit, unless prompted. Your credit score is a huge factor in closing on a home, so you don’t want to raise any red flags with your agent. Its best not to touch your credit at all before closing, because it could negatively impact your score. If you accidentally bought $5,000 worth of furniture while wine drunk the night before closing, its best not to mention it or the deal might go south.

Do not make any last minute seller requests. Unless it’s a home inspection issue (which you should definitely always bring up during the final walk-through), don’t ask the seller to do anything frivolous, like cleaning up debris, or replacing appliances.

Do not discuss the home appraisal in front of the seller. If you got a good deal on the home (which means the home was appraised for more than what you are paying), bringing it up at the closing is considered bad form, and might give the seller pause.

Do not mention any changes in employment. Life sometimes puts you in unexpected situations, but if you lost your job the morning of the closing, you should definitely keep it to yourself. Chances are the employment check has already been done and it won’t affect the closing unless you allow it to.

Do not try and pay your down payment with a personal check. I know this may sound like common knowledge, but you should use a certified or cashiers check for your down payment, rather than relying on a funds transfer, which could fall prey to systems issues and delay the process.